The Necromancers eBook

“First, you are quite right about some of our
workers being dishonest sometimes. They are,
Mr. Baxter, I have seen more than one, myself, exposed.
But that is natural, is it not? Why, there have
been bad Catholics, too, have there not? And,
after all, we are only human; and there is a great
temptation sometimes not to send people away disappointed.
You have heard those stories, I expect, Mr. Baxter?”

“I have heard of Mr. Eglinton.”

“Ah! Poor Willie.... Yes. But
he had great powers, for all that.... Well, but
the point you want to get at is this, is it not?
Is it really true, underneath it all? Is that
it?”

Laurie nodded, looking at her steadily. She leaned
forward.

“Mr. Baxter, by all that I hold most sacred,
I assure you that it is, that I myself have seen and
touched ... touched ... my own father, who
crossed over twenty years ago. I have received
messages from his own lips ... and communications
in other ways too, concerning matters only known to
him and to myself. Is that sufficient? No”;
(she held up a delicate silencing hand) “...
no, I will not ask you to take my word. I will
ask you to test it for yourself.”

Laurie too leaned forward now in his low chair, his
hands clasped between his knees.

“You will—­you will let me test it?”
he said in a low voice.

She sat back easily, pushing her draperies straight.
She was in some fine silk that fell straight from
her high slender waist to her copper-colored shoes.

“Listen, Mr. Baxter. Tomorrow there is
coming to this house certainly the greatest medium
in London, if not in Europe. (Of course we cannot
compete with the East. We are only children beside
them.) Well, this man, Mr. Vincent—­I think
I spoke of him to you last week—­he is coming
here just for a talk to one or two friends. There
shall be no difficulty if you wish it. I will
speak to Lady Laura before you go.”

Laurie looked at her without moving.

“I shall be very much obliged,” he said.
“You will remember that I am not yet in the
least convinced? I only want to know.”

“That is exactly the right attitude. That
is all we have any right to ask. We do not ask
for blind faith, Mr. Baxter—­only for believing
after having seen.”

Laurie nodded slowly.

“That seems to me reasonable,” he said.

There was silence for a moment. Then she determined
on a bold stroke.

“There is someone in particular—­Mr.
Baxter—­forgive me for asking—­someone
who has passed over—?”

She sank her voice to what she had been informed was
a sympathetic tone, and was scarcely prepared for
the sudden tightening of that face.

“That is my affair, Mrs. Stapleton.”

Ah well, she had been premature. She would fetch
Lady Laura, she said; she thought she might venture
for such a purpose. No, she would not be away
three minutes. Then she rustled out.